Fix for: 'Server Application Unavailable' Error after Applying Security Update for IE

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Date: Sat, 23 Aug 2003 10:04:42 -0400

MS has posted this here:

http://www.asp.net/faq/ms03-32-issue.aspx

Fix for: 'Server Application Unavailable' Error after Applying Security Update
for IE
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We have identified an issue with the recent MS03-32 Security Update for
Internet Explorer security patch and ASP.NET V1.0 running on Windows XP. This
patch can be installed manually or by obtaining recent critical updates from
the Windows Update site.

The symptom of this issue is that after installing the patch on a Windows XP
machine, all requests to ASP.NET applications running on the local IIS 5.1 web
server result in an error message saying "Server Application Unavailable".
Requests to remote web servers are unaffected.

This issue only impacts installations running ASP.NET V1.0 on Windows XP. It
does not impact machines running Windows 2000 or Windows Server 2003. It also
does not impact machines running Windows XP with ASP.NET v1.1 installed.

Please note that this issue is not a security bug with ASP.NET. It does not
open up or allow any malicious attacks against an ASP.NET application or
server. Instead, it is purely a functional bug caused by the patch itself.

We are working hard on a permanent solution for this issue. In the meantime,
you can execute the following batch file as a workaround for the issue. The
batch file does the following:
Stops the IIS and ASP.NET state services
Deletes and recreates the ASPNET account with a known temporary password
Uses the Windows runas command to launch an executable that creates an ASPNET
user profile
Re-registers ASP.NET. This creates a new random password for the account and
applies default ASP.NET access control settings for it
Restarts the IIS service

The batch file contains a hardcoded temporary password of "1pass@word" which
you will be prompted to enter for the runas command when the batch file is run.
After the runas command completes, the ASPNET account password is recreated
with a strong random value. Note that the batch file may fail if the hardcoded
password does not meet the password complexity requirements in your
environment. If that's the case, you can change it to another value that is
appropriate for your environment.

Important note: If you have added custom access control settings or database
account permissions for the ASPNET account, they will need to be recreated
after this batch file completes. This is because when the account is
recreated, it will get a new security identifier (SID).

Important note: If you are running the ASP.NET worker process with a custom
account other than the ASPNET account, then you should not run this batch file.
Instead, you should log in interactively or use the runas command with that
account which will create a user profile for that account.

The batch file is included in the self-extracting archive below. To use it:

You must be running as an account with Administrator privileges
Download and open the self-extracting executable file
Extract the contents to c:\
Select Run... from the start menu, and enter cmd.exe
In the open command windows, type c:\fixup.cmd.
When prompted, enter 1pass@word as the password.
If you have previously custom access control settings or database account
permissions for the ASPNET account, you'll need to re-apply these settings now.
Ask questions and get answers in the Issues with 'Server Application
Unavailable' error on Windows XP forum.
Many apologies for the inconvenience that this has caused. We'll post
additional information as it becomes available.

The matrix below details platforms and versions impacted by this issue.

.NET Framework Version # Platform Affected
Version 1.0 Windows 2000 Professional No
Version 1.0 Windows 2000 Server No
Version 1.0 Windows XP Professional Yes
Version 1.0 Windows Server 2003 No
Version 1.0 Windows XP Home with Cassini No
Version 1.1 Windows 2000 Professional No
Version 1.1 Windows 2000 Server No
Version 1.1 Windows XP Professional No
Version 1.1 Windows Server 2003 No
Version 1.1 Windows XP Home with Cassini No

Thanks,
The ASP.NET Team

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